Dealings of the Heart
by Awesome Rapidash
Summary: Jack and Elli are happy together, however a misunderstanding with another girl threatens to destroy this. The upcoming fireworks festival provides oppritunities for both Jack and Jeff. Who will come out ahead? Chapter 5 is up. JackxElli
1. Jack and Elli

_This story is based off of Harvest Moon 64. Elli and Jack are a couple, but Elli sees Jack helping another girl and jumps to conclusions. Will this threaten their relationship? Read and find out. _

_This story is being co-written by __**roxas-kh**__ and __**Awesome Rapidash.**_

_**Dealings of the Heart**_

_**Chapter 1: Jack and Elli**_

Jack walked out the gate of his farm and down the path towards Flowerbud Village. As he passed into town he thought briefly back to the first time he'd done so.

Flashback

Having only just arrived in Flowerbud Village, the Mayor had taken the time to show Jack some of the town. He'd showed Jack where the library was, then the flower shop, as well as the tool shop. Finally, last but not lease He'd shown Jack the bakery.

As the young farmer walked up to the bakery he could smell the delightful goodness inside. He wanted so badly to go inside and check it out. However, it would have been rude to leave the Mayor since he was being so kind to him. So with a sorrowful face he turned his eyes away from the bakery and he continued on with the tour.

"_I bet I'm going to be spending a lot of time in there, I already know it."_ Jack chuckles to himself.

He continued to follow along and listen as the Mayor lead him through the rest of the tour. Jack was very happy at the moment when the Mayor let him go and he immediately returned to the bakery.

Walking inside Jack inhaled the wonderful aromas. "Mmm, the bakery smells even better on the inside than it does on the outside!" He thought happily.

He looked around curiously for the place to buy the delicious smelling food. In doing so he saw a beautiful girl.

Sure, at that moment she had kinda untidy short brown hair and her face and dress were completely covered in flour and eggs as well as other baking ingredients. But something about her told Jack that she was a very kind and caring young woman.

Jack started to approach her and when she noticed him he could see her cheeks burn in embarrassment at her current state, although Jack couldn't see why she was embarrassed.

"Hello, my name's Jack." The young farmer says in a friendly tone, introduced himself to the pretty baker.

"Hello, my name is Elli." She replies softly, still somewhat embarrassed.

"I can get some cake here right?" Jack asks hopefully.

Elli nodded. "Yes you can what kind would you like?" She asks curiously.

The farmer takes a moment and looks at the yummy cakes and pies on display in the case in front of him. "Hmm, I'd like a piece of strawberry cake please." Jack finally replies.

"It's coming right up." Elli laughs as she opens the display case and removes the pink colored cake. She didn't feel quite so embarrassed now; after all it seems the young man she'd just met was very kind.

"_He is very handsome as well."_ She thinks to herself, as she does she feels her cheeks begin to burn again.

She hurriedly placed the cake on the counter and cut a thick slice for the hungry farmer. She watched curiously as he began to eat.

Jack ate the delicious cake very quickly. It tasted so good he even licked his fingers when he was done!

Elli watched him eat the whole time and was really glad that he enjoyed it.

"Mmm, that was very good!" Jack exclaimed happily.

The farmers compliment caused Elli's smile to broaden even more.

"I'm glad you liked it." She replied. To her dismay she saw him start to head towards the door. "Are you leaving already?" She questioned curiously.

"Yes, I really must get back to my farm." He replied. Noticing the disappointment in her face he added. "But don't worry; I'll definitely come back as often as I can." He then opened the door and walked out.

End of Flashback

Three seasons have passed since that memorable first meeting in the bakery, during which time Elli and Jack have become a very happy couple.

Once back in town Jack walks over to the bakery and goes inside. There he is greeted by Jeff, the bakery's owner.

"Hi Jack, how may I help you today?" He asks quizzically.

"I'm just here to pick up Elli." The brown haired farmer replies as he walks up to the counter.

"She's in the back finishing up with some cookies." The baker informs Jack plainly. "She should be done soon though." He adds softly.

"In that case I'll have a piece of peach pie and some relax tea while I wait." Jack says happily.

"Sure thing, I'll get that right away." Jeff replies before turning his attention to the pastry case in front of him.

Jack sits down at one of the tables and watches as Jeff prepares the items for him. After a short wait Jeff brings over a slice of peach pie and some relax tea, putting them down in front of the farmer.

"Please enjoy!" He says happily. "I'll tell Elli that you're waiting for her." He adds before walking back to the counter.

Jack digs into the pie and then takes a sip of the tea. As he eats he can't help but notice that Jeff was eyeing him wearily. Jack knew that Jeff had been something of a father to Elli in the time after her parents had died. But was there more to it then that?

"_I wonder if Jeff thinks of her in a different way."_ The farmer ponders curiously. _"I wonder if he thought of her as his girlfriend. Nah, he's so much older than her, that'd be just so wrong."_

His thoughts are interrupted as Elli joins them.

"Hi Jack!" Elli greets happily as she walks into the front of the bakery. "How are you doing today?" She asks curiously.

"I'm doing much better now." He answers, getting up and giving the pretty auburn haired girl a hug and a kiss.

"Are you done with your cookies?" Jack asks curiously.

"Yep, I just finished the last batch." Elli replies happily. "Are we still gonna go down to the beach?"

"We sure are." Jack answers happily.

Jeff waves to them as they walk out of the bakery. Elli takes Jack's hand as they walk down the path towards the beach and Jeff watches in despair at their happiness.

"_It was almost mine; I almost had that happiness…" _He thinks to himself, as he does a twinge of jealousy runs through him.

Elli and Jack arrived at the beach a short time later. Elli sits down on the soft sand and pats the spot next to her, indicating that Jack should join her. The farmer sits down next to the auburn haired girl and Elli rests her head on his shoulders.

"The ocean is so relaxing, don't you think?" She asks curiously. "I just love to watch the waves as they break on the shore."

"The sea breeze is nice too." Jack adds as he places his arm around his girlfriend.

The couple remains on the beach watching the aquamarine waves breaking on the shoreline until the sun sets below the horizon. Jack gets up and after helping Elli to her feet they head back towards town.

As they approach the bakery Jack turns to Elli and smiles at her. "Well, here you are, home sweet home." He says in a cheery voice. "Can I visit you tomorrow?" He questions curiously.

"You sure can!" Elli squeals happily. "I'm gonna make us some cupcakes and we can eat them up on Moondrop Mountain."

"Sounds great, I'll see you tomorrow around 4:00." Jack says before leaning over and kissing Elli's cheek sweetly.

Elli blushes deeply as she watches the farmer head back towards his farm. Once Jack is out of sight she turns and walks into the bakery. Inside she finds Jeff waiting for her.

"So, how was your date?" He questions curiously in a tone that resembled her father. However, the truth was, it hurt him very much to ask her.

"It went great!" She replies happily. "We watched the sunset from the beach, it was so romantic." She adds, feeling her cheeks burn as she blushes.

After saying good night Elli heads to her room and gets ready for bed.

"_Tomorrow will be a wonderful day!" _She sighs happily as she slowly drifts off to sleep.

_Alright chapter 1 is done! How did everyone like it? Please take a moment and let us know how we're doing with a review. Thanks a bunch! _


	2. Misunderstanding

_Special thanks to __**Ultra Drama Queen**__ for the nice review! Also thanks to everyone who has taken the time to read our story. _

_This little tale of romance continues to be created in the minds of __**roxas-kh,**__ and __**Awesome Rapidash**_.

_Disclaimer: We don't own Harvest Moon, or do we? _

_**Chapter 2: Misunderstanding**_

The very next morning Jack is up bright and early and already taking care of his daily chores.

"Come on Daisy, just a little more." He urged his cow as he brushed out her tangled coat. Daisy moos softly as the farmer carefully combs out some of the more tangled spots. Finally the task is complete, and after milking her Jack loads up her feed bin with an armload of fresh fodder.

Jack goes about the remainder on the day doing this or that around the farm. As the day wears on he checks his watch. Seeing that it's almost time for him to meet his girlfriend he heads over to the house to get cleaned up. He takes a quick bath and changes into some clean clothes. Standing for a moment, he looks in the mirror at his reflection to make sure everything was in the right place and nothing was amiss. Nothing appeared to look wrong so Jack turned to leave, but then he noticed his cowlick.

"Why won't you ever go down?" He muttered to himself and he tried to get his cowlick to stay down but to no avail. He even tried wetting it, but it still wouldn't go down.

Jack sighed as he checked the time, noticing it was a few minutes past time for him leave so rushed out the door towards town. Just after walking out of the farms gate he hears someone's pain filled cries for help. A quick investigation uncovers Ann sitting on a log just beyond the farms gate. Curious, Jack walks over to the redheaded girl.

"Ann, what happened?" He asked in a concerned voice. "Are you hurt?"

Ann wipes the tears from here eyes before looking up at the farmer. "I was walking back from the mountain and I tripped." She began explaining. "I think I twisted my ankle." She said as she fought back fresh tears.

Jack bent down and looked at her badly swollen ankle. "Yep, I'd say you've done quite a number on it." He quipped, trying to take her mind off the pain with a bit of comedy.

Ann managed to laugh a little at Jack's comment. "But now how am I going to get home?" She asked in a worried voice. "Jack can you go and get my Dad?"

"I'll do better than that." The young farmer said before reaching under her and scooping her up into his arms.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Ann shouted in an alarmed voice. "Put me back down!"

"Don't fidget so much and relax." Jack replied. "I'll carry you back to your ranch."

A very red faced Ann settles down and allows the farmer to carry her back to Green Ranch.

Unbeknownst to Jack and Ann, Elli, who had become curious when Jack was late watched from behind a tree as her boyfriend picked the redheaded tomboy up and began carrying her towards her home. She followed quietly behind them until they reached Green Ranch.

Once there Gray took over. He was about to help his sister into the house when Ann stopped him.

"Wait just a minute Gray." She said and looked over at Jack standing next to her. She then leaned forward and kissed him smack dab on the lips! "Thanks for helping me Jack." She said after the kiss was finished.

Elli let out an audible gasp when she saw this.

Jack turned and saw the auburn haired girl standing there, her mouth agape and a look of disbelief on her face. He quickly tried to explain what had just happened.

"This isn't what it looks like Elli." He stammered. "I was just helping Ann since she sprained her ankle, that's all." He said quickly

"But I saw her kiss you!" Elli shouted back. "I thought I was the only girl you'd kiss?" She added softly as hot tears began to fall from her pretty brown eyes.

"Hey don't get so worked up over it Elli, it was just a friendly little kiss." Ann retorted defensively.

However for Elli the damage was done.

"A friendly little kiss?! You kissed him on the lips! I wouldn't call that a friendly little kiss!" Elli shouted very close to tears.

Then she turned to Jack. "Here, eat your cupcakes with Ann!" She shouted and threw the basket containing the pastries at Jack. She then turned and stormed off down the path back towards the town with tears dripping down her face.

Jack walked over to where the basket lay in the dirt and picked it up. He glanced at it sadly noticing the pasties and knowing how hard she must have worked to make them. A heavy feeling of guilt washes over Jack, causing his stomach to knot up tightly, and for a moment he felt like he might throw up. It took a few minutes for the feeling to subside and when it finally did he turned to where Ann and Gray were still standing.

"I guess I'll be heading back now." He said solemnly feeling very guilty.

"Jack, are you angry with me for what just happened?" Ann asked curiously.

"No, it's all just a big misunderstanding that's all." Jack replied. "I'll give her some time to cool down and try talking to her then." He added as he began walking towards the Ranches gate. He pauses just before he walks through and looks back at Ann.

"If you need anything just let me know." He said and walked out.

Elli ran all the way back to the bakery. She stormed inside and collapsed in a mass of sobs. Concerned, Jeff quickly moved over to her side.

"Elli, what's wrong?" He asked in a concerned voice. "Did something happen to you?"

Elli turns her tear stained face towards the master baker. "Jack's in love with Ann!" She cried loudly. "I saw him kiss her today."

This greatly surprised Jeff, and at first made him angry that Jack would ever do something like that. But he quickly realized that Jack would have never done something like that. Elli must have seen it wrong.

"Are you sure that's what you really saw?" Jeff questioned intently. "Maybe she kissed him for some other reason."

Elli wasn't in the mood for a debate and simply ran into her room, locked the door, and flopped onto her bed. She buried her face in one of her pillows and cried. She cried that night, till she could cry no longer and fell into a soundless sleep.

_Yay us, we finished the 2__nd__ chapter! So how do you like it so far? Please take a moment and let us know with a review. Thanks again! _


	3. Finding Comfort

_Thanks to those who were so nice and reviewed us last chapter, __**StarrNight, Libra1, **__and __**Ultra Drama Queen.**_ _We really appreciate your comments, you guys rock! _

_Disclaimer: Guess what? Harvest Moon isn't owned by roxas-kh or Awesome Rapidash. It's still owned by Natsume. _

_**Chapter 3: Finding Comfort**_

Elli awoke the next morning with a terrible headache.

The pretty auburn haired girl slowly traded the comfort of her soft bed for the cool morning air of her room. She walks slowly over to her dresser and takes out some fresh clothes, consisting of her usual blue dress and apron perfect for cooking and baking like she did everyday.

Today however, she didn't feel like baking at all. Nor did she want to talk or see anyone. All she wanted was for the pain to go away. With a sigh, she tried to put those thoughts out of her head and face reality. After getting dressed she headed down to get started on the mornings baking, knowing that shortly many of Flowerbud Villages residents would be stopping by for their morning bagel. One of those residents just might be the one man she did not want to ever see again.

Standing in front of her mirror Elli sighed, her eyes were still red and swollen from all the crying. Her whole face just seemed so hurt and her throat felt raspy as well. _"How can I face anyone looking like this?"_ She muses to herself. _"How in the world could I face Jack?"_

After a few more sighs she brushes her hair and rinses her face. Normally Elli hated to wear makeup, but today it would serve as a way of hiding her sadness. It felt so weird to try to hide everything that she felt through the make up. It just seemed so wrong, but she had to do it. Once she was somewhat satisfied with herself the auburn haired girl walked downstairs and into the kitchen.

"Good morning Elli." Jeff says cheerfully as she walks in. Considering what just happened the night before, Jeff knew that he would have to be very cheerful for her. _Just for her…_

Elli looks over at Jeff and smiles weakly. "Good morning Jeff." She mutters softly. "I'll get started on the baking…" She begins but Jeff cuts her off.

"Elli, what happened yesterday?" He asks in a concerned voice. "You said something about Jack and then ran into your room."

The young girl stops where she is and looks over at the master baker. "Jack's in love with Ann!" She shouts, feeling hot tears once again tracking there way down her cheeks and streaking the makeup she'd just applied. "I feel so betrayed by him."

Jeff walks over to her and puts a reassuring arm on her shoulder. "Are you sure of this." He questions intently. "Maybe what you saw was just some sort of misunderstanding."

"No, it wasn't!" She retorts loudly. "I saw Ann kiss him on the lips, and he did nothing to stop her." Elli cries sadly. "It was no misunderstanding."

Jeff pauses for a moment to digest what Elli has just told him. "Did you ask him why Ann kissed him? I mean, maybe there was a good explanation for it." He says in a questioning tone.

Suddenly he realizes something, had he just defended Jack's actions? He quickly dismisses the very idea that he could have done such a thing.

Elli just shakes her head sadly. "I didn't ask why, I was to upset." She says softly. "I thought he loved me."

Jeff feels anger and contempt for a certain brown haired farmer welling up inside him. He'd deal with Jack later, but now it was time to comfort a friend.

"Hey El, go ahead and take the day off." He says pulling the young girl closer to him. "You look like you could use some time to recuperate."

"Is it really okay?' She asks curiously, looking at the older man with her soft brown eyes. "I can still do my job after all."

"Of course it is." Jeff replies happily. "I'll take care of dinner too, so don't worry about it."

Feeling a little better Elli returns to her room and lies down on her bed. _"Maybe all I need is a little rest and I'll feel better."_ She hopes as she closes her eyes.

Normally it would have been so hard to fall asleep so early in the day since she is so used to the early hours that the bakery, but perhaps because of the emotionally stress she had she fell asleep within seconds of lying on her bed.

Meanwhile, Jack had just finished with his morning chores and was about to head into town to see if Elli would want to hear his side of things. He had barely slept at all the night, Elli's crying face kept haunting him. Every time he'd try to close his eyes and relax, her face kept popping into his head.

On the road into town, Jack spotted pink hair walking towards the mountains. Popuri spotted Jack quickly and ran over to him.

"Good morning Jack!" She says in her bubbly voice. "Such a nice day isn't it?"

"I guess it is." Jack mutters softly. "At least the sun is shining."

"Yes it is!" Popuri squeals happily. "I'm gonna go up to Moon Mountain and pick some pretty flowers, you wanna come to?"

Jack thinks about it for a moment. _"Hmm, maybe if I gave Elli some flowers as an apology."_ He ponders curiously.

"Sure Pi lets go!" He says happily and follows Popuri towards Moon Mountain.

For the next hour Jack follows Popuri's guidance and picks a pretty bouquet of flowers.

"Are those for Elli?" She asks curiously as the farmer adjusts the flowers in the arrangement. 'It really is a pretty bouquet." She adds cheerfully.

"Yep, there for Elli al right." Jack begins. "We sorta had a fight yesterday and I want to give these to her as part of my apology."

"Oh you two had a fight?" Popuri says with a bit of surprise in her voice. "I guess that's why I saw her crying yesterday."

"Yeah, she saw Ann kiss me and got mad." Jack begins explaining. "Ann had sprained her ankle and was just thanking me for helping her get back home, that's all."

"Well I'm sure that Elli will like those." Popuri replies, pointing at the colorful blooms in the farmers hand.

"Thanks for helping me pick them Pi." Jack says as he begins to head back down the mountain.

"You're welcome Jack, and good luck!" The pink haired girl shouts at the departing farmer.

It takes Jack 15 minutes to walk to the bakery. He reaches for the door knob but hesitates momentarily. _"What if she doesn't like the flowers?"_ His mind races with the thoughts of rejection.

After taking a deep breath and letting it out he reaches out and pushes the door open. Walking inside he is greeted by an icy stare from Jeff.

"What do you want?" He questions bluntly. "Are you here to gloat about your kiss with Ann?"

"No!" Jack retorts loudly. "I did come to see Elli though, is she in the kitchen?"

"She's not here right now." Jeff replies curtly. "I gave her the day off so she left and I don't know where she went."

"Well, when she comes back could you give her these flowers for me?" Jack asks hopefully.

"Humph, I suppose so." He replies plainly and grabs the bouquet from the brown haired farmer. "You should stay away from her for a while too." He adds.

Jeff watches as Jack walks out of the bakery, he looks at the pretty blooms in his hand and a sly smile crosses his face. "_Heehee, it's time for some payback." _The baker thinks maniacally, taking the flowers and walking towards Elli's room.

He hopes to use Jack's flowers sway Elli's love towards him instead of still crying over Jack. "_Maybe it was for the best this way. If Jack was going to treat her this way, then Jack shouldn't be with her."_ He hoped.

Elli is lying on her bed quietly contemplating what she should do when she hears a knock on her bedroom door. Curious she gets up and walks over to the door. "Who's there?" She asks curiously.

"It's me Jeff, can I come in?" He questions politely.

Elli opens the door and allows Jeff inside. She takes immediate notice of the colorful flowers in Jeff's hand.

"What's with the flowers?" She asks curiously.

Jeff blushes brightly and hands the flowers to Elli. "They're for you." He begins. "To help you feel better."

Elli can feel her face begin to burn as she accepts the bouquet. "They're very pretty, thank you Jeff." She says happily.

"You're welcome." He replies cheerfully. "Please enjoy the rest of your day." He adds as he walks out of the girl's room.

Elli looks at the colorful blooms and smiles. _"Jeff is always so nice to me. Why can't Jack be like him instead?"_ Elli muss to herself.

Back on Jack's farm he is finishing up with some painting on the barn when he hears Ann's voice calling for him.

"Hi Ann, are you feeling better?" He questions curiously as he watches the tomboyish girl limp towards him.

"Yep, but my Dad says that I gotta stay off it as much as possible." The red haired girl replies.

"Then why did you walk all the way to my farm?" Jack questions curiously. "I mean if you're not supposed to be on your ankle that is."

"Well, I just wanted to know if you've spoken to Elli yet." She says plainly. "You know, to explain to her what happened."

"I wanted to, but Jeff said that he gave her the day off and she wasn't there." Jack answers quietly.

"Hmm, I hope that she's not mad at us." Ann says as she sits down next to Jack. "I mean I just wanted to say thanks for helping me get back home."

"I left her some flowers at the bakery and I'm going to head over there in a little bit to see if she's there." Jack says plainly.

"Well I hope she understands that I didn't mean anything with the kiss." Ann replies, sounding a bit sad.

"Yeah me too Ann, me too." Jack replies as he begins to walk back toward the bakery.

_Yay us, we finished another chapter! We hope you like the way our story is progressing. Please take a moment and leave us a review. Thanks again! _


	4. Trust and Betrayal

_Thank you to everyone who reviewed our last chapter __**The Scarlet Sky, iterica, Moonlit Dreaming, carlo707, Ultra Drama Queen,**__ and __**Momo-chan12.**__ We really appreciate all of your comments and hope that you like this chapter as well!_

_**Disclaimer: **__I don't think we need to say it but here goes. We don't own Harvest Moon, Natsume does. _

_**Chapter 4: Trust and Betrayal **_

Almost a week has passed since that devastating day.

The morning dawned bright and sunny in Flowerbud Village. Warm beams of sunlight dance across Elli's face bringing her back from the world of her dreams. Yawning deeply, she slowly sits up and becomes aware of her surroundings. After a few moments she slips out of bed and heads over to the shower.

As the warm water caresses her skin Elli feels her self relaxing. After washing herself and her hair she turns off the water and steps out of the shower stall. She feels a chill as the cool morning air surrounds her. The auburn haired girl grabs her towel and wraps it around her, replacing the cool air surrounding her with warm softness.

After drying off, Elli walks over to her dresser and removes her clothes, the same clothes she wears everyday, the clothes of a baker. She quickly dresses and heads downstairs to begin the preparations for the mornings baked goods.

"Good morning Elli!" Jeff says happily as he watches the pretty brown eyed girl descend the stairs into the bakery. "You seem happy this morning." He adds noting the bounce in her step.

"Good morning to you to Jeff." She answers in a cheery tone. "And yes, I do feel happy this morning." She chirps before reaching up and removing the ingredients to make bagels.

"If you'd like, I can watch the front of the store." Elli says while mixing the batter. "I think it's time for me to face the facts."

"Are you really sure you want to do that?" Jeff asks curiously. "I mean, Jack may stop by."

"I know that." Elli replies. "But…, I need to move on and face him." She adds softly.

"Well, alright then." The elder baker replies in an unsure voice. "But please don't push yourself." He adds, walking over to his young assistant and giving her a pat on the shoulder.

Meanwhile on Pallet Farm Jack is busy feeding his chickens. As he scatters the feed around the clucking birds his thoughts begin to drift.

"_How can I get myself out of this mess?"_ He ponders wildly before returning to his chickens.

"What can I do guys?" He says as he picks up one of his hens. "How can I win Elli's heart back?"

The bird just clucks back, not understanding what her caregiver is asking.

Jack sets the bird down and chuckles. "Yeah, I guess you don't know what to do ether."

The hen simply runs over and joins the others as they pick at the feed spread out in the coops floor.

The brown haired farmer finishes up in the chicken coop and walks over to the barn. As he does he sees Ann and Popuri walking through the gate.

"_I wonder what they want."_ He muses as his direction changes and walks towards the two girls.

"Hi Jack!" Popuri chirps in her usual bubbly voice. "We came to see how you made out with the flowers the other day."

"Yeah, Popuri told me about them. That was a sweet thing to do." Ann says as she walks over to the young farmer.

"So tell us, what did Elli do when you gave her the flowers?" Popuri queried with great interest.

"She wasn't there when I got to the bakery, so I left them with Jeff. He said that he would give them to her for me." Jack answers plainly.

"You did what?" Ann exclaims loudly. "Are you crazy?"

A look of hurt crosses the brown haired farmers face as he reacts to Ann's outburst. "W…, what do you mean by that?" He asks softly.

"You have to do things like that in person!" The redheaded tomboy begins explaining. "It won't have the same effect if you let someone else give her the flowers. Jeez you no nothing about being romantic, do you."

"She's right you know." Popuri chirps in. "If I was to get flowers from someone other than the one I love, it wouldn't mean anything to me. In fact I'd probably be angry with that person."

Jack considers what the girls said and realizes that he's made a big mistake. "Damn, now what can I do." He says in an exasperated voice.

Ann and Popuri smile and each one grabs on of the farmers hands and drag him towards his house.

"This is gonna be complicated but I think I know how you can fix this." Ann says with a sly smile. "Come on Pi, we got some work to do."

Back in the Flowerbud Bakery Elli has just removed the last sheet of newly baked cookies from the oven when she hears the bell above the bakery shops door ring. Walking out of the back room she finds Lillia waiting patently at the counter.

"Hello Lillia, how can I help you?" Elli questions the pink haired woman curiously.

"I'd like two plain bagels please." She replies.

"Sure, coming right up." Elli says as she removes the baked goods from the display case and places them into a bag.

As Elli hands the baked goods to Lillia, the pink haired woman looks at her curiously.

"Say Elli, have you asked someone to accompany to the upcoming fireworks festival?" She asks curiously.

The auburn haired girl pauses for a moment before answering. "Umm…., no… I haven't just yet." She replies softly, avoiding eye contact with Popuri's Mother.

"Oh, well don't wait to long dear." Lillia says as she takes the brown paper sack with her bagels and heads towards the door.

Elli considers her words as she resumes her baking. A couple of minutes later Jeff walks downstairs and over to where Elli is.

"Wow, that cake looks delicious." The master baker says as he inspects the confection sitting in front of his assistant. "Will you do the icing next?" He asks curiously.

"Yes, I was thinking of using the white icing and trimming it with some pink and blue icing." She replies happily.

"Hmm, that should look nice." The elder baker answers. "I can't wait to see it once you've finished."

Elli looks up at Jeff and thinks about what Lillia had said earlier. "Umm.., Jeff, can I ask you something?" She mutters softly.

Jeff looks at Elli curiously. "Sure, what's up?" He asks, waiting to hear Elli's response.

"I…, I, was umm…, wondering if you'd like to go to the fireworks festival with me?" She asks hopefully.

Jeff can't believe what she has just asked him, and has to work to hold his happiness in check. "Sure Elli, I'd love to go with you." He replies happily.

Elli smiles and happily returns to her cake. _"Let's see what Jack thinks about this."_ She muses to herself as she ices the cake.

_Uh oh, what will Jack do now that Elli seems to be falling for Jeff? What do Ann and Popuri have in mind to try and reunite Jack and Elli? Sorry for leaving you with a cliffhanger but… Anyway please take a moment and leave us a review. Thank you! _


	5. The Fireworks Festival Part 1

_Hi everyone! This is __**roxas-kh**__ and __**Awesome Rapidash**__ finally back with an update! We hope that you enjoy this chapter. _

_Thank you to __**Ultra Drama Queen, Momo-chan12, Moonlit Dreaming, **__and __**Muu-chan **__for your reviews of the last chapter! We really appreciate hearing what you have to say. _

_**Chapter 5: The Fireworks Festival Part 1**_

"So what's your plan?" Popuri questions curiously. Jack, Ann, and Popuri were all at Jack's farm trying to plan a way to get Jack and Elli back together.

The animals were already fed and taken care of, and the crops were watered so the only thing Jack had to worry about was Elli. Ann is the first to think of an idea.

"Well I was thinking that we could try and make Elli jealous. You know, one of us could accompany him to the Fireworks Festival and sorta swoon all over him." Ann explains carefully to them, but then looks away sheepishly when she realizes a flaw.

"Of course that will only work if Elli actually attends the festival." She adds, but Popuri still shook her head at that idea.

"I don't know about that Ann, it sounds kinda risky to me." Popuri replies in a cautious voice. She knew that many things could go wrong with that plan, but she didn't want to offend Ann.

"I mean, what if she gets even madder and completely dumps Jack?" She explains further to her friends. "Elli would probably become infuriated because Jack would have moved completely on in her eyes, and then she would never give Jack another chance again."

"Yeah, that wouldn't be good at all." Ann sighs finally acknowledging that most likely it would just make things worse than they already were. "Hmmm… give me a moment to think. I'll figure out something." She adds and begins to think hard again trying to think of an idea.

"How about we just get some new flowers and I'll make sure to give them directly to her this time." Jack chimes in using their old idea, but making sure to do it right this time.

"I really don't wanna take a chance with her getting even angrier." He sighs, worrying about how delicate things were with Elli. Any little thing was a chance to make Elli angry, and it was difficult to work around that.

"Okay, this time make sure to give them to Elli and no one else." Popuri adds with a tone of authority in her voice. It was actually obvious to the group to not make the same mistake again though.

"I still think there has to be a better way of going about this." Ann retorts after thinking about it for a while. It made more sense to not try the same idea again, and come up with something that would work better.

"I mean you really messed up by not giving her the flowers." She explains, stating the obvious and trying to help them understand, but it made Jack a little annoyed.

"Yes I know. You both have made that very clear to me." Jack retorts loudly, his irritation was really showing through right now even though he usually never gets this mad.

"I just want to know how I can make it up to her." Jack sighs in defeat. The only reason he was even mad was because nothing seemed to be able to go right for him anymore and it was causing him to reach his boiling point.

"Yeah, that seems to be the problem at hand." Popuri sighs. "All the stress is finally getting to him." But luckily, Ann thinks up another seemingly better idea.

"Okay, how about this?" Ann starts off smiling. Both Jack and Popuri lean in eager to hear what Ann has to say. At this point, Jack is really desperate for an idea.

"We all know that Elli likes good food, right? Well, we can help Jack make a delicious dinner for her and then he can give it to her at the Fireworks Festival." Ann says excitedly. Popuri smiles happily at the good idea, but Jack is still unsure.

"That's all well and good but what if she doesn't go to the festival?" Jack asks curiously. This time he doesn't want there to be any mistakes.

"Elli never misses this festival." Popuri replies plainly. She had been best friends with Elli ever since they were little, so of course Popuri would remember things like that.

"She's gone every year since I can remember." She explains. Elli and Popuri did many things together since they were little, and they always looked forward to this festival together.

"Alright, we have our plan, now we just gotta decide what to make for the dinner." Ann adds happily. The trio set about the process of deciding what kind of foods to make. Jack, being Elli's boyfriend, knew what exactly to make.

"I think it should defiantly favor a lot of sweets." Jack suggests with a sense of authority, she was his girlfriend so he should naturally know what she liked. "I just happen to know that she loves sweets."

"Duh, Jack everyone in Flowerbud Village knows that Elli has a huge sweet tooth." Popuri chirps directly which caused the group to all laugh. Then they all began to get to work.

Over at the bakery, Elli is sitting behind the glass pastry cabinet relaxing with a cup of warm green tea. The bakery is empty except for her so her mind began to wander with thoughts of Jack.

"_I wonder what he's doing right now." _She muses softly without realizing how fondly she still thought of Jack. She takes another sip of the steaming beverage and continues to think about Jack, when it hit her how stupid she was for thinking about him.

"Why do I care what he's doing, he's in love with Ann!" She shouts rather loudly to herself in anger. Little did she know that someone else had just entered the bakery and had heard her outburst.

"Who's in love with Ann?" A man's voice behind her questions curiously. Elli immediately jumps when she hears the voice and mentally smacks her self for talking out loud.

"Ahhh… Sorry but I was just thinking out loud." She says while standing up and facing the voice cautiously. Her eyes quickly scanned the blue uniformed mailman standing on the other side counter.

"Oh, hi Harris, what can I get for you?" She asks cheerfully, after all it was her job to be kind to all of her customers. She also hoped to get his mind off what she had just said. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work very well.

"Well first you can tell me who you were referring to. I find such things so very interesting." The mailman admits to the young brown haired baker. Of course since he is the mailman, he would know most of the town's happenings from the gossip.

Elli rolls her eye sarcastically. She knew that what ever she told him would be re-told that night in the bar. She also knew that Jeff would be there as well and she didn't really want him to know that she had been thinking about the brown haired farmer.

"It was nothing at all. Please just ignore my aimless rants. Would you like something today?" She questions, hoping to change the subject once more. Luckily for her it seemed to work better this time.

"I'll take one cream filled and one jelly filled donut, but of course I'd really like to know about Ann and her mystery lover." He tried to get her to tell him once more. His attempt was in vain as Elli was having none of it.

"I said it was a random thought. It didn't mean anything." Elli replies, beginning to sound a bit irritated by the postal employee's persistence. She turns around quickly to grab a donut for the mailman and gives it to him.

"Thanks. Well, I guess you aren't gonna tell me." He sighs sadly and turns towards the door, but first not without realizing the fact that a certain brown haired farmer was missing.

"Oh, by the way, where's Jack been? I haven't seen him around the bakery for a week now." He asks curiously. He usually always saw Jack here when he came to buy a bite to eat after his long job.

"I think he's just been busy around his farm and hasn't had time to come by." She explains, her cheeks begin to warm as she thinks about him. It was a lie, but Elli really didn't feel like having her feelings spread all through the bar during the evenings drunken discussions.

"Really? I saw him the other day up in Mt. Moon with Ann and Popuri. I couldn't tell what they were doing but it certainly wasn't farm work." The mailman quickly responds thoughtfully. Elli's eyebrow rises at hearing that Jack was with the two girls up on the mountain.

"_What was he doing up on the mountain with and them? And why would Popuri go to? Wouldn't Jack want some alone time with Ann? "_ She ponders the thought for a moment before returning her focus to Harris.

"I don't know what he was doing; maybe they had a question about something and wanted to show him." Elli offered. It was a weak explanation but it was all she could think of at that very moment.

"Good day then Elli, tell Jeff I said hello." Harris says before turning and departing. Elli waved good bye to him and slumped down into a chair after he left in exhaustion. However, her ears could still hear the mailman talking to himself outside the bakery walls.

"I wonder if Cliff has finally talked to Ann…" The mailman thought and began a trek to Moon Mountain to find out the truth.

_Oh, what will happen when Harris goes to the Mountain? Will Jack be successful at patching things up with Elli at the Fireworks Festival? The next chapter will be out soon! Ja ne. _


End file.
